questions & answers

Question: I am going to have a son anyday now. The mother wanted to put him up for adoption but I talked her out of it. She wants to give me full custody of him, being that she's only 17, and in high-school, she wouldn't have time to raise him. How do I ensure I get full custody?

Answer: The following is provided for general information only. To find out how the law applies to a specific situation, contact an attorney directly.There is an article on this website entitled “Things You Should Know About Custody and Parenting Time,” and it may be helpful in answering some of the questions you have. Child custody is determined as part of a divorce, legal separation or paternity/maternity action. One of the above actions may be filed in order to obtain a custody order, but until that time the parents will operate with equal legal access to the children. According to A.R.S. 25-403, Arizona courts will make determinations of child custody, or “legal decision-making and parenting time,” in accordance with the best interests of the child after considering a variety of factors which can be seen by reading the statute itself.